What People Are Saying About Us

Doggie Daycare, Dog Boarding, Dog Sleepover,Dog Sitter and Dog Walker

We hear so many “horror” stories about dogs being mistreated and how dogs can be traumatized after returning from boarding services. We were concerned that Hoku would be left in a cage or be among large and/or aggressive dogs. We did check out other boarding places (we preferred a home, rather than a company or vet’s office), and found some with too many (10 or more) dogs, dogs playing in dirt areas, sleeping areas unsanitary, and “caregiver” not sincerely interested in getting to know Hoku and Hoku’s needs.

Carly’s personality and her genuine love of dogs, especially their safety and well being, is truly heartwarming. She treats Hoku as her own and dearly tends to Hoku’s needs. While we are away, she keeps us informed of Hoku’s progress. She sends us photos of Hoku at various times of the day. We can’t describe the wonderful feeling and reassurance that has given us knowing Hoku is happy while we’re away. We can then concentrate on the business at hand rather than worry about how Hoku is doing. Carly is so thoughtful and made our trip so pleasant by knowing that Hoku was being cared for.

Carly is absolutely the best!! Her prices are reasonable, but most of all Hoku dearly loves Carly and we would recommend VIPaws without any hesitation.

— Frank

The whole process from the first call to the day I picked Drake up went very smoothly. It was so easy in setting everything up. Carly was flexible for the evaluation day and all the paperwork was self explanatory; it outlined everything I needed to do and expect. Nothing was a surprise, except for the awesome pictures! I was surprised about the amount of picture texts and videos I received and loved it! Since I was on a trip, it was so nice to get pictures of my dog everyday! It let me know Drake was having fun and adapting well to the environment.

I was concerned my dog wasn’t going to get along with other dogs or other dogs were not going to get along with my dog. As an owner, you are always afraid your dog might get bit or attacked by another dog, or the other way around. Thus, i like the evaluation day because it lets you be able to know if your dog gets along with the other dogs. It was comforting to know all dogs had to be up to date on vaccines and on flea/tick treatment. I love how Carly takes them out for walks and they get to play at the park.

Carly was also very timely in her responses to me with any questions I had, via phone, text or email. I also like the updates and things you noticed about him while in your care, for example you mentioned how he is always really friendly with all dogs, or ways to train him to pee, or how you noticed his skin was dry and flaking and maybe something like fish oil would help. (At the next vet appt, the vet had also recommended fish oil for his skin!) I was not worried at all about my dog while in your care and I would definitely bring him back!

— Kristen (🐶 Drake)

Having a large breed puppy made it hard to leave Colbie with just anyone. I needed an intimate, loving environment that would understand that even though Colbie looked like an adult dog, she was still a puppy. Her limited exposure to other dogs made her insecure and added to my concerns. However, VIPaws was just the place.

During her time at VIPaws, Colbie learned to walk with the pack and developed some of her socialization skills. She was well-cared for in a clean, structured environment and was encouraged to be her playful, inquisitive self. She was also kept safe. I also appreciated all the pictures and videos Carly took daily and texted to me. I felt better about leaving Colbie when I saw her interacting with the other dogs and having fun. I could even see how much she was growing!

Overall, my experience with VIPaws was positive. Carly was organized about what we needed to bring in order to have a successful stay and also very knowledgeable about doggie behavior. I appreciated her observations and comments. I would recommend VIPaws to others.

Thank you again for such a wonderful first experience!

— Lisa (🐶 Colbie)

Carly is so easy to talk to, and it was such a reassuring experience to know that our two-year-old family dog, Kitsune, was in such a warm home while we were away. Even though relatives and family friends may be an option for some, I feel it is more suitable that one with such an extensive experience such as Carly be the sole source of dog care while an owner is away. She really knows how to ease dog anxiety (as well as owner anxiety!), and make sure they get enough exercise, food, rest, and play.

She was able to incorporate Kitsu into the pack in a safe and attentive manner so that he felt truly comfortable and at ease in a new environment. By the end, he was the one initiating play! I have never seen that side of him before. It was also a blessing to receive daily updates on Kitsu, how he was doing, and of course lots of pictures! We were able to relax and enjoy our vacation without having to constantly worry about him. We will DEFINITELY be going back to her again, even when we are not on trips. I’m sure Kitsu will miss the pack, so it will be nice for him to visit his playmates more often!

— Haru

VIPaws is opening up during the perfect season when families love to travel for the holiday season. You can trust that your little furry friend will be in a supervised happy environment with other well behaved dogs.

I’ve never ever trusted companies in the past to watch my Coffee and Mochi because you just don’t know if they are truly giving you the quality they are charging you for, if they are safe and happy, if they are getting bullied by other dogs or if they will fall into depression due separation anxiety. I used to worry about these things and I love my dogs so much that it was safer for me to just ask friends and family to watch them if we had to travel.

Carly is the owner and creator of VIPaws and is someone I’ve adored since we met 13 years ago. Following her passion and dream she has also put in the hours, weeks, and months of working at a doggy daycare center while researching other daycares. I am so proud of her for never settling for less than perfect when it comes to her standards of what her daycare will encompass. I trust her 100% with my doggies because she is honest and upfront. You will see for yourself the bonds she will create with your doggies. VIPaws will be a second home for your doggies and I highly recommend them.

— Rei (🐶 Coffee & 🐶 Mochi)

Carly is so awesome with what she does! When my family and I went on a short vacation, we left our 9 month old pup Max with her for several days. She took him out on walks and playtime at the park everyday. I got picture texts of Max playing with other dogs and having a good time everyday we were away. I can tell that Carly really loves dogs and understands them well. Max was well cared for and I really appreciate all she’s done. She puts a lot of effort in to making Max and myself feel comfortable. I will definitely ask Carly again when we need Max to be watched.

— Gary (🐶 Max)

VIPaws LLC and Carly are a true top-notch dog boarding and day care organization. My wife and I were looking for a boarding option for our pug when we went to a wedding in New York and we loved the individualized feel of VIPaws. Carly only takes a limited number of dogs at a time and they are all under 25 lbs. Our dog’s boarding time also doubled as a socialization session as he lived, walked, and played with many other dogs of similar size.

Carly truly cares about dogs and it showed throughout our dogs entire stay with her. We received about 20 pictures a day of his whereabouts and activities. We also received text updates of what friends he made or what behaviors he exhibited daily. This was a great touch and it definitely helps reassure pet owners that their dogs are in good hands. I really appreciated these daily updates.

Another aspect that showed that Carly and VIPaws really care about their customers’ pets was the evaluation day that was needed before boarding or daycare can begin. We dropped our pug off for a one day evaluation to see if he fit in with the pack and was able to adjust to the company’s facilities. He came back from this evaluation with a new sense of happiness and confidence.

After we returned from our trip, it was great to have a personal greeting with our dog as he was brought out to see us. Carly does a great job of making the drop-off and pick-up sessions seamless and easy on the dogs and the owners. When we picked our dog up, she was even willing to take the time to discuss what behaviors he could work on and fill us in on any fun stories that she wasn’t able to share via text or Email. This was a very nice touch as it showed she really does care about the dog’s health, behavior, and most importantly, their well-being while in her care.

Overall, VIPaws was an absolute delight to work with. Our pug seemed very happy during his stay and that means a lot to any pet owner. I know he can be a little much at times, but Carly’s patience and care were second to none. I would highly recommend the boarding service offered by VIPaws to anyone with a small dog that is looking for quality care.

— Patrick (🐶 Rupert)

I’m not usually a yelp reviewer (mostly just a consumer of reviews), but i’m delighted to give my review of Carly/VIPaws. I was looking for another daycare/boarder to keep my pup’s socialization skills fresh while also giving him a fun time. Even though i’m perfectly happy with another daycare he goes to for socialization, VIPaws offers a more personal home touch can’t be had with other larger daycares.

Carly is fantasticly awesome with all her pack members. She makes sure all the pups go on walks throughout the day along with lots of playtime and one on one time with her. My pup loves all of it and has already made lots of friends. Carly also keeps all her guests parents with pictures and instagram/facebook posts.

As for boarding, Carly is now my go-to for boarding after a three night stay. I love the fact that she doesn’t put the pups in a kennel and there’s always a daily/nightly agenda. Their playtime is supervised to be sure all of her guests are behaving properly.

Initially when I visited her place, I had some reservations about leaving my pup at someone’s house, but my reservation were quickly put to rest after talking to Carly. She is very professional, knowledgeable about dogs, and possess a fantastic enthusiasm and passion for dogs. After his first stay, any reservations I had were gone.

VIPaws and Carly are awesome! Highly recommend!

I’m not usually a yelp reviewer (mostly just a consumer of reviews), but i’m delighted to give my review of Carly/VIPaws. I was looking for another daycare/boarder to keep my pup’s socialization skills fresh while also giving him a fun time. Even though i’m perfectly happy with another daycare he goes to for socialization, VIPaws offers a more personal home touch can’t be had with other larger daycares.

Carly is fantasticly awesome with all her pack members. She makes sure all the pups go on walks throughout the day along with lots of playtime and one on one time with her. My pup loves all of it and has already made lots of friends. Carly also keeps all her guests parents with pictures and instagram/facebook posts.

As for boarding, Carly is now my go-to for boarding after a three night stay. I love the fact that she doesn’t put the pups in a kennel and there’s always a daily/nightly agenda. Their playtime is supervised to be sure all of her guests are behaving properly.

Initially when I visited her place, I had some reservations about leaving my pup at someone’s house, but my reservation were quickly put to rest after talking to Carly. She is very professional, knowledgeable about dogs, and possess a fantastic enthusiasm and passion for dogs. After his first stay, any reservations I had were gone.

VIPaws and Carly are awesome! Highly recommend!

— Tyson (🐶 Dash)

I found VIPaws on Yelp! I just moved my dog, Hunney Girl, and I from Kona on the Big Island and was looking for a place for her to socialize and board her during my fiance and I travels off island. Contacting Carly was with ease via email, phone and text. Hunney Girl loved Carly from first day and I noticed such a calming effect she has on her. Hunney Girl was happy to see her, which is very important to me. Pick up and drop off are easy and Carly keeps me up to date on Hunney Girl’s day with the pack via texts and pictures. I have used VIPaws for day care and boarding and have been happy with both. I like the structured routine (e.g. walks, play-time, one-on-one, etc..) where dogs can be dogs! She gives Hunney Girl one-on-one attention as well as play time with the pack. We will continue to use her services as we enjoy her and the pack very much! As long as Hunney Girl is happy, we’re happy!!! Thanks Carly!

— Shannon (🐶 Hunney Girl)

I would recommend Carly and VIPaws to anyone, and will definitely be using their boarding and daycare services again! Carly was amazing and I feel very comfortable leaving our Shih-poo, Axis, in her care. Carly was very informative on the services she provided and what a “typical day” included for the dogs who stay with her, and I was very impressed with her requirements for vaccinations and the need for a ‘trial day’ before we could board our dog. I felt very happy leaving Axis with Carly knowing that he was in a safe environment with other dogs who were a similar size and temperament to him!

The personal touches that Carly adds to the care of your dog are beyond compare! She will feed your dog the food you provide her, at the same time you would normally feed them at home, including treats or anything else you would like her to give them. This really helped Axis transition to his stay at VIPaws, and also when he came home again. I was worried that Axis might not drink as much as he should, and she paid extra attention to make sure that he had plenty of opportunities to drink and stay hydrated! I especially enjoyed the text updates from Carly with pictures of Axis on his daily walks or playing with the other dogs, and letting us know how what he was up to and how he was doing each day – this really gave us so much peace of mind while we were away from him!

It was also a great opportunity for Axis to socialize with other dogs, as he hadn’t had much opportunity to do so in the past. He was always a bit timid around other dogs, and Carly made sure to take the right steps in introducing him to the pack and making sure he was comfortable. In the week he spent with Carly and the other dogs there, he made huge advances in socialization and he now takes much more interest in other dogs and actively approaches them on walks – it was a really positive experience for him!

You can tell that Carly is really passionate about her business and the dogs in her care – she really takes the time to get to know your dog and their little quirks and personalities. She really exceeded all of my expectations and I am so glad we found her!!

— Meghan

Based on all the Yelp reviews I reached out to Carly about watching our dog for 5 days while our family went on vacation and it was the best decision. VIPaws went above and beyond in the care for our family pet. She was walked, fed and given lots of attention in our absence. Carly does an amazing job of communicating with the owner sending pics/texts with updates throughout the pets stay. There is no better person to have watch your pet than Carly at VIPaws. Her enthusiasm is infectious.

— Mike (🐶 Sarah)

Carly was amazing with our 10 month old Yorkie! We boarded Mia (our furbaby) with Carly overnight during our wedding and Mia had an amazing time! She has a bit of separation anxiety, but she was perfectly fine during the time away from us. Carly took her to the park and let her play with the other dogs; we even got pictures of their walks and play time during the day! 🙂 It really comforted us during our first time away from our Mia. I totally recommend Carly! AWESOME! Mia loved her!

— Trisha (🐶 Mia)

I was very pleased with Carly’s knowledge and experience working with dogs and how she kept in touch with me while I was traveling to let me know how Pablo was doing. Everyday I received a text letting me know how Pablo was doing and a generous amount of pictures of him on his walk. Overall, I was very pleased with VIPaws LLC. When I retrieved Pablo I learned from Carly that he displayed inappropriate behavior with the other dogs – resource aggression – and that he would not be able to return to VIPaws. I was surprised to get this information about Pablo, but I appreciated that she cared about the other dogs under her care enough to not let my dog return. I also appreciated that she was able to recommend a dog trainer for Pablo to address his resource aggression behavior. I would recommend VIPaws to others because Carly is very knowledgeable and she really wants your dog to have a safe place to board.

— Hannah (🐶 Pablo)

Carly is literally 1 of 3 people I would trust 100% with our pets. She is TRULY an animal lover, and she is very reliable and trustworthy. She has helped care for our dogs for over a year, and we have been consistently impressed with her friendliness, professionalism, and especially how clean and meticulous she is!

She’s also very good at walking our dogs – she does not let them get away with pulling or being naughty! She is a firm but kind leader, and we really appreciate that. Our dogs come back from their walks with her tired and happy.

I’m so glad Carly is offering daycare and sleepovers now, so that we will always have someone to rely on when we need care for our pets.

— Jana (🐶 Kona & 🐶 Riley)

One of our main concerns was that Sadie hasn't had a lot of experience spending time with other dogs; in the past she has only had regular interaction with a friend's dog (where we have had her stay when we were out of town), so we weren't sure how she would do with other dogs. She is also an indoor dog and spends nearly all her time indoors, so we were concerned about how she would do staying outside. I think the biggest surprise is how well Sadie adjusted to all of the things we were concerned about. She got along with the other dogs in the pack and she did well staying outside. Those things have translated to her daily life now as she is much better interacting with other dogs on our walks and is excited to go walking and get outside.

We were happy to receive the daily updates and pictures from the daily walks. They really helped put us at ease and it was reassuring to see that Sadie was having a good time and we would definitely recommend your services! We have complete confidence in your care for our Sadie and are actually wanting her to stay with you regularly so that she can get regular socialization (and see her new furry friends again!)

To anyone who is considering using your services for the first time, know first that your dog is in good care, and our advice is to follow Carly's recommendations. The extra visits and occasional "homework" we had were especially helpful for Sadie to adjust and enjoy her time while there (and not be stressed out). Carly considers each dog and their well being and care individually, and any recommendations and adjustments are made accordingly - it was very clear to us that Carly really cared about our Sadie as if she were hers, and Sadie was that much better for it. It was a great experience for our Sadie and are hoping for more visits to reconnect with Sadie's new friends!

— Kevin & Lianne (🐶 Sadie)

We have only left our puppy with Carly once, but we can already tell this will be her second home. We had first left her with another day care facility that I will not name, because there was nothing wrong with them. They are just a city facility that doesn’t take the dogs out for walks and lets them go potty on potty pads. Our puppy has never used potty pads and had no idea what they were. This set her back with her potty training. Both VIPaws and the other facility posted pictures of our precious little one. At the first place, our puppy was walking around aimlessly with her tail tucked between her legs. She did not look happy at all. With Carly, she was smiling and rolling in the grass. It was like night and day. And with our loved ones, when our puppy is happy, we are happy.

VIPaws keeps the group small and as close to your normal routine as possible, which is so crucial when you are leaving your dog during travel. You’re already leaving them with someone else. Why would you change anything else?

Carly is a little more on the expensive side, but we think it’s worth it for peace of mind. Keep in mind she also only takes cash.